After a wonderful stay in Lauterbrunnen, today we travel to the French region of Switzerland. We’ll be staying in the town of Lausanne, taking boat rides on Lake Geneva and visiting the nearby vineyards.

This morning we were up early to eat breakfast and finish packing before our check-out. Check-out was at 10:00 and we made our way downstairs a little earlier to avoid the rush. Since we had nothing else to do, we strolled over to the train station to wait for our train.

One last view

Arriving at the station early, we were able to catch an earlier train back to Interlaken, which will make things much easier as we won’t have to rush to catch the second train. We originally had just seven minutes, now we have thirty-seven.

Our Interlaken train was right on time to whisk us off to Bern. Just as on the first trip to Bern, the views all along Lake Thun were beautiful. Even though it was before noon, there were lots of people enjoying the lake.

When we arrived in Bern, we had twelve minutes before our next train. No need to rush though, it was just on the next set of tracks. We left right on schedule – 12:04 and headed to Lausanne.

The scenery was much different on this leg of the journey. Rolling hills covered with crops of all sorts. Hectares upon hectares of corn, wheat and other green stuff as far as the eye could see.

When we neared the town of Levey, the train began to follow along the shore of Lake Geneva, making the scenery even more beautiful. It wasn’t long before we passed by the terraced vineyards of the Lavaux region and then arrived at Lausanne.

Bienvenue mes amis! Nous Somme’s arrivés à Lausanne.

The train station in Lausanne is large, but quite manageable. We easily found our way to the Metro station, which we rode down to Ouchy along the lake.

We are staying at the Chateau d’Ouchy, located right on the lakefront. When we arrived to check-in, our room was ready for us. It overlooks the lake and is very nice. Pretty spacious, with a large bathroom and great shower. There are two huge windows that open, but more importantly, there is air conditioning.

Historic Chateau d’Ouchy

We took the opportunity to rest a little bit before cleaning up for dinner. I don’t know why sitting on a train tires one out, but it does.

Dinner tonight is at the hotel restaurant. It’s called Le 57 Grill and is situated so you have a lovely view of the lake while dining. Our waitress was a delightful young woman who we enjoyed talking to throughout our meal. The other staff were equally friendly and attentive and really made the dinner a treat.

Sue had grilled veal filet mignon and I had grilled lamb chops. Hers came with french fries and I had potatoes with Parmesan and truffle dip. If I said ‘Yum’, would you believe me?

After dinner, we took a little walk along the waterfront and located the piers for tomorrow’s boat cruise.

It is so pretty here, I’m sure we’re going to enjoy Lausanne.